Media

The Chairman welcomed members
of the public, Councillors and Honorary Aldermen to the first of
East Devon District Council’s Extraordinary Virtual Council
meetings on Thursday 28 May 2020.

He explained that all
participants were taking part remotely and the meeting was being
viewed online and recorded.

During the meeting the public
would be able to participate if they had pre-registered to speak,
and the Chair would invite public speakers to participate in the
meeting at the under item 1. No members
of the public had registered to speak at this meeting.

The Chairman continued to
outline the process for ensuring the meeting could take place
effectively for those participating directly or those watching
online.

Before commencing the meeting
the Chairman sadly made two announcements about the deaths of two
former East Devon District (EDDC) Councillors Aldermen David Scott
and Douglas Hull.

David Scott passed away
peacefully aged 89 on 20th May 2020, after a brief spell in
hospital, and will be sadly missed by all that knew him. David was
first elected in 1982. He gained
much respect from his colleagues on EDDC, and he also served on
Exmouth Town Council with a great love for the town. David retired
in 1999 after serving 17 years as a councillor.

Douglas Hull sadly passed away
on 25 May 2020. Douglas was a big supporter of Axminster and was
extremely well-known locally for his public service, having held a
series of elected offices over a period of over 50
years.

He served at different times on
Hawkchurch Parish Council, Axminster
Rural District Council, Axminster Town Council (serving as Mayor
three times), East Devon District Council (which made him an
Honorary Alderman in December 2019) and Devon County Council (where
he was also an Honorary Alderman – and a former
vice-chairman).

One of Douglas’s proudest
achievements was the establishment of the Millwey Industrial Estate, without which Axminster
would be a much less prosperous and viable community. Douglas will be sadly missed.

The Chairman then started the
meeting by doing a roll call of everyone present, and then
confirmed that the meeting was quorate.

69.

Motion: to determine whether to hold a meeting to elect positions

‘Should the
Council hold an Extraordinary General Meeting on 8th June 2020 at
6pm to elect the positions of Chairman and Vice-Chairman of the
Council.’

Minutes:

The Chairman said that a number
of requests had been made over recent weeks, his responses to which
had been circulated to the whole membership. The Chairman detailed
the background to the requests and how events unfolded and
explained his reasoning for the approach that had been taken and
why therefore the Council was now holding two EGMs.

The Chairman then invited
members to speak on the issues outlined above.

A number of Councillors stated
that they would not be supporting the motion since it was not the
right time to have an EGM whilst a pandemic was occurring and when
experienced Councillors were already in key roles to provide
continued strong and stable leadership at a time of
crisis.

Others commented that elections
and changes within the Council would normally be happening in May
and that by not holding meetings as requested would be
undemocratic.

During the debate a motion was
put forward that the question be put, which was seconded. The
Chairman considered that there had not been enough debate and that
therefore the question would not immediately be put and permitted
further comment.

Cllr Andrew Moulding proposed
having a recorded vote on the motion.

Cllr Ian Hall seconded the
motion.

The proposal to decide whether
to have a recorded vote on the motion was put to the vote and
carried unanimously by those present.

The Chairman then invited those present to vote on the motion to
determine whether to hold a meeting to elect positions, and it was
carried by a majority of those present.